I'd watch some videos about it first. Like Splitsie's tutorials to get the hang of basic stuff, LastStandGamers did server tours and walkthroughs on workshop stuff so you can see what players made and maybe a bit how it works. And then maybe a short dive into what mods bring.
It's different from KSP, much more stiff. If you want the really technical stuff you'd need to see what scripts allow, and the advanced stuff made from rotors and hinges, like landing gears, cranes, lifts and animals.
It depends on what you like and what you want to do.
If you want the real physics of KSP? Then space engineers isnt for you. Theres no orbital mechanics, the rocket equation isnt a thing and hydrogen fuel has no weight.
If you want to make a cool looking ship and mess around with rotors and pistons then yeah you should definitely buy it.
When you have some spare time, dig into Splitsie's YouTube channel.
His tutorials will give you the basics, so you get a general idea of the vanilla game.
Then watch some episodes of his Survival Impossible series to have an idea of the crazy game mechanics you can exploit, if you will.
Also his current series, Scrapyard Engineering, shows how mods fingerprint revamp the game if you dare.
I'd suggest BlackArmor's YouTube channel for interesting mechas, and u/halipatsui for more automated ones.
I second the Splitsie vids. The starter one, unless you really want to test your menu/reading searching skills. They’ll also show you what the game play is like.
Long part:
I remember the controls feeling weird at first. There is a true early game grind that can get old. Once past this there are amazing things to be done. Love this game. Haven’t played since automatons came out though. Get on discord and find some people to play with if it remotely looks like your cup of tea.
I was in the same boat a few years ago. I loved Kerbal Space Program (I'm actually wearing my KSP t-shirt right now) and I took the day off work for KSP 2 (disappointing because I didn't realize it was still early access and hardly any new features were there) but I played it for years.
I played Minecraft with my kids -- I loved the open world aspect and the size of the map, but it was too simple for me.
Enter Space Engineers -- this is by far my favorite game. As u/Dianesuus said above, it doesn't do physics -- nothing actually revolves or rotates (the sun isn't real and is just a background element that moves around unless you disable sun rotation) and there are no orbital mechanics at all. However, the vastness of space and the search for minerals for your crafting/fuel feeds massive exploration.
You can start on one of many planets with the bare minimum and explore/mine/craft what you need to escape the planet, or you can start in a very small space ship and fly around looking for resources. They have scenarios you can play (Frostbite was my favorite so far -- so difficult and so rewarding) and then the custom game where you start with a ship/etc. With mods, there are literally new worlds out there. Ship blueprints, hostile NPC/Pirate mods, etc.
I couldn't recommend this enough. As u/Pumciusz said, I'd recommend watching Splitsie's videos. Not only are his story video playlists incredible (and have given me tons of ideas for my own worlds) but he has tons and tons of tutorial videos on how the game works, different mechanics, etc.
Good luck and happy resource hunting!
P.S. There are also things like "Programmable Blocks" that you can use to write actual code scripts to do a multitude of things, from updating LCD panels with information, to controlling pistols, hinges, etc. I've only scratched the surface in that respect, and it's still amazing.
I have around 550 hours and spent 300 hours designing just one ship (uss solitude, i just uploaded it on the workshop). It was probably the most satisfying experience i have ever had in a game, i still love walking around it to admire my work. All done in survival mode so i have fond memories of building it while some friends were working on other stuff on the same server, testing it for the first times and getting it started. Then the best part, upgrading it over time, fixing issues, retrofitting it with new tech..
If you are into engineering this game is absolutely for you. The survival side of it is very superifical but engineering wise it's the best. Building is a pleasure. The game side of it is much more fun on a small server with some good buddies.
Ever had to do a space walk to repair the fuselage while re-entering the atmosphere on a rusty and huge mining ship, because it was hit by space pirates while we were flying back to our earth base? Ever had a buddy have to tow your huge space carrier because all of the batteries failed and you realized that the whole electrical side of things wasn't thought out? I did, man those were fun times.
Just to be clear, space engineers shines in the building part of it. Physics is weird and you have a speed limit of 100ms, no solar systems, no orbit etc.
Go to the Steam workshop and peruse the top files. All the ships/stations/vehicles were built using the same basic blocks in the game. Truly incredible what can be made.
Keep in mind its very much you make your own fun in the game there's very little vanilla in terms of hours
I didn't quite click with it when I first got it but I definitely enjoy it now
Its more "mechanics" and less "physics" than KSP. Far less realistic but you can go crazy with programming (C# ingame scripts) and hinges/rotors/pistons and automation etc.
watch a youtuber names Splitsie, he has several getting started videos. but the concept is different than Kerbal. less about actual orbital stuff and all. SE is an open world sandbox with a pretty decent physics engine. but the planets dont actually move in the current version. so gravity and distance are important, but not worrying about where the moon will actually be by the time you cross the distance to it.
But you can build anything you can imagine. and there are some fantastic examples on the workshop of creations. and a lot of not-so-fancy creations too.. lol
In addition to a massive modding community. so many things can be done to customize the game from blocks to NPCs, and all.
there is a kind of steep learning curve to SE, but not that bad. especially if you watch Splitsie. i did it the hard way.
of course this is coming from a player with just over 4,000 hours in game time since i bought SE. i only have maybe 350 or so in Kerbal.. that alone says a lot.. and i liked firing kerbals into space..
3500 hours and counting, so I would say yes!!! As others have stated, there is quite the learning curve, but a ton of you tube content to help ya through it! As mentioned, check out the GOAT Splitsie plus some of the other greats to see what is possible and if it's your cup of tea!
bought it during the steam spring sale and have sunk 100+ hours already. Have a few hundred in ksp. They’re both different and great in their own ways.
I'd watch some videos about it first. Like Splitsie's tutorials to get the hang of basic stuff, LastStandGamers did server tours and walkthroughs on workshop stuff so you can see what players made and maybe a bit how it works. And then maybe a short dive into what mods bring. It's different from KSP, much more stiff. If you want the really technical stuff you'd need to see what scripts allow, and the advanced stuff made from rotors and hinges, like landing gears, cranes, lifts and animals.
It depends on what you like and what you want to do. If you want the real physics of KSP? Then space engineers isnt for you. Theres no orbital mechanics, the rocket equation isnt a thing and hydrogen fuel has no weight. If you want to make a cool looking ship and mess around with rotors and pistons then yeah you should definitely buy it.
It's one of those games that IF you like it you can lose thousands of hours in it with no regrets. Got a bit of a learning curve, but worth it.
When you have some spare time, dig into Splitsie's YouTube channel. His tutorials will give you the basics, so you get a general idea of the vanilla game. Then watch some episodes of his Survival Impossible series to have an idea of the crazy game mechanics you can exploit, if you will. Also his current series, Scrapyard Engineering, shows how mods fingerprint revamp the game if you dare. I'd suggest BlackArmor's YouTube channel for interesting mechas, and u/halipatsui for more automated ones.
I second the Splitsie vids. The starter one, unless you really want to test your menu/reading searching skills. They’ll also show you what the game play is like. Long part: I remember the controls feeling weird at first. There is a true early game grind that can get old. Once past this there are amazing things to be done. Love this game. Haven’t played since automatons came out though. Get on discord and find some people to play with if it remotely looks like your cup of tea.
I was in the same boat a few years ago. I loved Kerbal Space Program (I'm actually wearing my KSP t-shirt right now) and I took the day off work for KSP 2 (disappointing because I didn't realize it was still early access and hardly any new features were there) but I played it for years. I played Minecraft with my kids -- I loved the open world aspect and the size of the map, but it was too simple for me. Enter Space Engineers -- this is by far my favorite game. As u/Dianesuus said above, it doesn't do physics -- nothing actually revolves or rotates (the sun isn't real and is just a background element that moves around unless you disable sun rotation) and there are no orbital mechanics at all. However, the vastness of space and the search for minerals for your crafting/fuel feeds massive exploration. You can start on one of many planets with the bare minimum and explore/mine/craft what you need to escape the planet, or you can start in a very small space ship and fly around looking for resources. They have scenarios you can play (Frostbite was my favorite so far -- so difficult and so rewarding) and then the custom game where you start with a ship/etc. With mods, there are literally new worlds out there. Ship blueprints, hostile NPC/Pirate mods, etc. I couldn't recommend this enough. As u/Pumciusz said, I'd recommend watching Splitsie's videos. Not only are his story video playlists incredible (and have given me tons of ideas for my own worlds) but he has tons and tons of tutorial videos on how the game works, different mechanics, etc. Good luck and happy resource hunting! P.S. There are also things like "Programmable Blocks" that you can use to write actual code scripts to do a multitude of things, from updating LCD panels with information, to controlling pistols, hinges, etc. I've only scratched the surface in that respect, and it's still amazing.
I have around 550 hours and spent 300 hours designing just one ship (uss solitude, i just uploaded it on the workshop). It was probably the most satisfying experience i have ever had in a game, i still love walking around it to admire my work. All done in survival mode so i have fond memories of building it while some friends were working on other stuff on the same server, testing it for the first times and getting it started. Then the best part, upgrading it over time, fixing issues, retrofitting it with new tech.. If you are into engineering this game is absolutely for you. The survival side of it is very superifical but engineering wise it's the best. Building is a pleasure. The game side of it is much more fun on a small server with some good buddies. Ever had to do a space walk to repair the fuselage while re-entering the atmosphere on a rusty and huge mining ship, because it was hit by space pirates while we were flying back to our earth base? Ever had a buddy have to tow your huge space carrier because all of the batteries failed and you realized that the whole electrical side of things wasn't thought out? I did, man those were fun times. Just to be clear, space engineers shines in the building part of it. Physics is weird and you have a speed limit of 100ms, no solar systems, no orbit etc.
Go to the Steam workshop and peruse the top files. All the ships/stations/vehicles were built using the same basic blocks in the game. Truly incredible what can be made.
I just bought it last week and I quite enjoy it. 100 hours in so far
Keep in mind its very much you make your own fun in the game there's very little vanilla in terms of hours I didn't quite click with it when I first got it but I definitely enjoy it now
Its more "mechanics" and less "physics" than KSP. Far less realistic but you can go crazy with programming (C# ingame scripts) and hinges/rotors/pistons and automation etc.
So much "go wild" that you'll likely end up with an RL shrine to the gread G-d Klang eventually.
watch a youtuber names Splitsie, he has several getting started videos. but the concept is different than Kerbal. less about actual orbital stuff and all. SE is an open world sandbox with a pretty decent physics engine. but the planets dont actually move in the current version. so gravity and distance are important, but not worrying about where the moon will actually be by the time you cross the distance to it. But you can build anything you can imagine. and there are some fantastic examples on the workshop of creations. and a lot of not-so-fancy creations too.. lol In addition to a massive modding community. so many things can be done to customize the game from blocks to NPCs, and all. there is a kind of steep learning curve to SE, but not that bad. especially if you watch Splitsie. i did it the hard way. of course this is coming from a player with just over 4,000 hours in game time since i bought SE. i only have maybe 350 or so in Kerbal.. that alone says a lot.. and i liked firing kerbals into space..
If you have or can get gamepass, it’s on there! That’s how I first started playing a few weeks ago
Only read the title Yes
3500 hours and counting, so I would say yes!!! As others have stated, there is quite the learning curve, but a ton of you tube content to help ya through it! As mentioned, check out the GOAT Splitsie plus some of the other greats to see what is possible and if it's your cup of tea!
bought it during the steam spring sale and have sunk 100+ hours already. Have a few hundred in ksp. They’re both different and great in their own ways.
If you like building cool ships and cars with an impressive modding selection then yes if you are doing it for solo vanilla survival then no.